Slave. The word itself conjures all sorts of negative images and ideas. We are taught from an early age that slavery is corrupt and wrong, that it is an evil practice. Honestly, for the most part, these things are true. However, there is a form of consensual slavery that defies these conventions. A slavery where no one is trafficked, no one is forced and those involved enjoy the whole process. This is the world of the sex slave trade in Second Life.
In this world men and women both volunteer to be placed up for auction in hopes of being sold and possible finding a Dominant or Master with whom they can find a long term relationship. In most conventions this would appear to be nothing more than a dating service, however; because this is the world of BDSM, there is much more to the equation. The individuals who place themselves up for auction are primarily submissives, this differs from a traditional dating service where anyone can, and does, offer themselves up for a date. All submissives have a list of limits, things they will and will not do, that a Dom or Master must follow. This makes finding the right match far more intricate and often times a negotiation process will follow. The negotiation process allows the Dom or Master to discuss the submissive’s limits and determine which are soft limits, meaning they can be changes or even ignored, or if they are hard limits, meaning they can never be ignored or changed. This whole process can be very involved and is something that is not present in a typical dating ritual.
The purpose and function of a slave auction is twofold, firstly it allows a Dom or Master to easily review the limits put forth by the submissive, as well as briefly learn about their personality through an application they fill out that is provided by the auction site. Secondly, the submissive makes some money, as he or she keeps a portion of the proceeds of the auction. The application filled out by the submissive is usually very detailed and included information about what times they are available and what they are looking for in a Dom or Master. Another important detail in the application is the experience of the submissive, which tells her prospective buyer how much training she may need. Some auction houses, such as PoD, even offer some training.
The training of a submissive is an important factor in a D/s, Dominant and submissive, or M/s, Master and slave, relationship. How each submissive is trained will usually vary with each relationship because the specific training is tailored to the relationship. However, basic training, including things like BDSM terms, protocols and manners are something every submissive should know.
The process of the slave auction is a relatively simple one, best described by Joshuua Barenhaut, owner of PoD auction house. “Girl comes in and fills out an application it contains info about what they are after and about them. Once they are up on the board, they get chances to speak to potential buyers. Buyers come in and if they see a girl they like they can place a bid, it is like an ebay auction in that sense. whomever wins the slave/sub does a one week contract with the buyer. if they wish to go longer, then they can. In fact we encourage that we want the girls to find a match not just make a buck. We have had matches stay together a very long time, we have matches that were made 5 years ago that are still active today.”
The reasons for offer oneself up for auction are varied. One auctionee was a babygirl looking for a Daddy. “Most of the other avenues of meeting Daddys are gone these days. It seems the only places men who call themselves Daddys hang out are at pervy places and they just want.. well .. sex.. I guess coming here I was/am hoping to find a high class Daddy who know that it is not all about sex to be Daddy.. much like it's not all about sex to be a MAster/Dom.” Aɴɢᴇʟ Lʏɴɴ, a young woman up for auction told me.
Marz Barenhaut, slave to the owner Joshuua, had another rason, saying “Well, I have always been a bit submissive my entire life but I didn't know what it was until I got onto SL and I was introduced to it. It was like gears clicking into place for me and suddenly everything made sense. That was many moons ago though and I have evolved and changed a lot. I got into auctions before PoD was even started. To be honest I can't remember why I went to the one I did but I did. I was there for a long time. My First master from here I met in person and to this day I still speak with him although he is no longer my Dom. Shortly after that place closed and I found myself aimless. The various other auction houses had little rules or integrity so I sorta kept aimless until I found PoD. Master Josh took me in and I have been a part of their family for years now.”
Despite what one would think, the women I spoke to didn’t feel demeaned by being a slave or offer up for auction. With Marz saying “I have learned a lot in the years that I have been in the lifestyle. I started out as a slave and realized that wasn't for me, I then went to being a pet then to a submissive. Nowadays I associate myself more as a Babygirl with slave like tendencies. Though to answer your question, no never. Being a slave/sub/Babygirl is far more empowering than it is ever demeaning. You are serving the person you chose to submit to how can that be demeaning? Although there are girls who like that feeling.”
PoD is one of, if not the, largest auction houses in Second Life. It opened in December of 2012 and, outside of a short hiatus in 2015, has been open ever since. It was opened because of an incident at another auction where the slave did not fulfill her contract. Because of this Joshuua decided he wanted a better experience for the buyer and strives to provide that at PoD. It also offers so much more than just the slave auctions, the sim has a dungeon, maze, surfing and much more, which are all listed on their website, as well as testimonials of those who have had a successful auction.
While slavery, in most senses, is a bad concept from start to finish, the Sex Slave trade is Second Life is much different, offering people in the BDSM lifestyle a way to selectively choose someone they would like to be with and in many cases this connection is long lasting. Marz said it best when she said, “we are not money hungry fiends like some people like to paint us and we are not here to abuse women. We are also not a sex sim. Our goal here is to help people in the lifestyle to find their person.”
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